1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a circulation type coin take in and out machine which utilizes the coins for monetary payment transactions which have been received in monetary receipt transactions, and more particularly to a device for storing and dispensing coins separately according to monetary denominations, and a coin line-up device.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, a circulation type coin take in and out machine includes: a coin receiving and dispensing section for dispensing a number of coins one by one which have been supplied to a coin receiving inlet at a time in such a manner that they are not lined up at all; a coin distinguishing section for transferring coins thus supplied one after another while distinguishing imitation coins from the original; a coin dividing section for dividing the good coins (which have been passed through the coin distinguishing section) separately according to the monetary denominations while transferring them; a storage section for storing coins separately according to monetary denominations which, as the name implies, stores the coins separately according to the monetary denominations which have been divided in the above-described manner; and a dispensation section for dispensing coins separately according to monetary denominations which, in response to a coin dispensing instruction issued during a monetary payment transaction, dispenses coins one at time from the section for storing coins separately according to monetary denominations.
In the case of a circulation type coin take in and out machine set at a store cashier, a window of a financial institution, and so forth, its height is limited. More specifically, there has been a strong demand for a reduction of the height of the machine so that a cash register is set on it. In order to meet this requirement, Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. Hei 4-111090 has disclosed a device for storing and dispensing coins separately according to monetary denominations in which the bottom surface of its coin storing section is made up of a dispensing belt which is stretched obliquely upwardly. Hence, the device is lower in height than the conventional one in which coins are stacked in coin storing cylinders which are held vertical, and coins are dispensed from the bottoms of those cylinders.
However, the above-described conventional device suffers from the following problems:
(1) In a monetary receipt transaction, coins divided separately according to the monetary denominations are merely dropped on the coin dispensing belts in the section for storing and dispensing coins separately according to the monetary denominations; that is, those coins are simply and carelessly stacked up with gaps between them (as if they were scraped up). This means that the above-described device is low in coin storing efficiency. Hence, in order to increase the coin storing capacity, it is necessary to increase the volume of the device itself. In the coin storing section, the coin storing capacity depends on how coins are stacked; that is, it is not constant. Its coin storing space should be large to some extent since the number of coins which can be accommodated therein is variable. PA1 (2) In a monetary payment transaction, in response to a coin dispensing instruction, the coin dispensing belts are driven, and a heap of coins stacked and not lined are leveled one after another with a separating roller, and after they are laid in one layer and in one line, they are supplied one at a time. Hence, in order to dispense coins, which are held fallen down and lined, from a heap of coins stacked variously and not lined, for instance the bridging of coins makes even coins of one and the same monetary denomination different in coin dispensing time. Hence, in dispensing as many coins as required, it is necessary for the device to have an additional time at all times. As was described above, coins are dispensed successively after they have been laid in one layer and in one line with the separating roller. On the other hand, coins are different in diameter separately according to monetary denominations; in other words, different coins are different in diameter, and therefore different coins are different in coin dispensing time--especially a 1-yen coin (Japanese coin) smallest in diameter (20.0 mm in diameter) is clearly different in coin dispensing time from a 500-yen coin (Japanese coin) largest in diameter.